Missing you boys

Hi son. I’m sorry I couldn’t be there for your 5th birthday. I called your mom, but she wouldn’t take my phone call. I couldn’t come because I didn’t know where you were. I hope that you had fun, whatever you did that day. I wish we were together. Back here in America, there are so many things that I want to show you. There are so many places I want to take you.

You have an energy and an independence that is much more American than it is Japanese. I hope that you manage to hold on to that as you grow. I hope that this experience doesn’t take that away from you.

Koh,

You just turned 3 big guy. It’s been just over 3 months since I was last able to see you. I’m sure you have grown so much. I wonder what you do now that your papa cannot be there? By the time you can read this you will probably barely remember me.

Let me tell you son… you used to come crawl in to my lap, have me put on a tv show and fall asleep. That was your favorite place. You’d come in. I’d kick my feet up onto my desk. We pick a show together. And then you would fall asleep.

Usually your mother would come in and want to wake you up. She’d insist that you had to be woken up and have a bath right then. I’d always try to talk her out of it. Ask her to let you sleep and tell her that I’d give you a shower in the morning. Unfortunately, she liked her schedule more….